Centrelink PR supremo Hank Jongen tips bucket on how robodebt concerns were shut down by SES

By Julian Bajkowski

February 1, 2023

Hank Jongen
Department of Human Services general manager Hank Jongen. (The Mandarin)

In literally half a century working in the welfare bureaucracy, more recently as its public face and bullet catcher, Services Australia (nee Department of Human Services) general manager Hank Jongen (SES Band 2) could be forgiven for knowing how to pick his battles.

Appearing before the Royal Commission into the Robodebt Scheme on Tuesday, Jongen took just minutes to reroute the public relations bus he was meant to go under back at his former senior executive service masters who left him to clean up their mess without a mop or a bucket.

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